Do girls only want a career because they can't attract a man?

1:11 pm - 04/14/2012

Forget ambition, financial security and that first-class degree. A controversial study has concluded that the real reason women pursue careers is because they fear they are too unattractive to get married.

The research team, made up of three women and two men, said that when men are thin on the ground, 'women are more likely to choose briefcase over baby'. And the plainer a woman is, they claim, the more she is driven to succeed in the workplace.

Central to their argument was the idea that women have evolved to become homemakers and men, providers.

They said this means that when men are scarce in a particular area, women, and particularly less attractive ladies, may decide they need to provide for themselves with a well-paid career.

The researchers carried out several experiments to come up with their startling argument.

The first looked at the number of eligible men in an area, which they called the 'operational sex ratio'.

After collecting data from across the U.S., they found that as the number of eligible men in a state decreased, the proportion of women in highly paid careers rose.

In addition, the women who became mothers in those states did so at an older age and had fewer children.

To prove that a lack of men was behind the trend, the researchers then carried out practical experiments.

These involved showing women newspaper articles or photos that gave different impressions of the sex ratio in an area and then quizzing them about which was more important – work or family. When they were led to believe that men were scarce, they were more likely to prioritise career over family.

However, when questioned, the women didn't believe the shortage of men would lead to more job openings for women. Instead they thought there would be more competition to find a husband.The final experiment tested the researchers' suspicion that less attractive women would be more interested in careers because they might find it difficult to secure a partner.

The 87 young women were given mocked-up newspaper articles describing the sex ratio in nearby university campuses and were asked about their views on family and career.

They were also asked how attractive they believed themselves to be to men.

Those women who saw themselves as being less desirable than average were highly likely to be career-orientated.

Researcher Kristina Durante, from the University of Texas at San Antonio, said: 'Does the ratio of men to women in a local population influence women's career aspirations? Real-world archival data and a series of laboratory experiments suggest that the answer is yes.'

In Britain, there are slightly more younger men than women. However, females aged 36 or older are in the majority. And at universities, female undergraduates now outnumber males.

Economist Ruth Lea said that on a basic level it made sense that women would have to support themselves if the odds of being supported were low.

However, she said many factors, from aptitude to ambition, played a much larger part in a woman's career path.

And agony aunt Pam Spurr said: 'I often find that women who were getting on well in the workplace will in private conversations with me, express wanting to settle down.'

The study, which was carried out by U.S. and Dutch researchers, is published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.

Also, as a sole-wage earner mama of three with an awesome career and an even more awesome stay at home dad spouse, I'm totally fucking over my family dynamics suddenly being fodder for public criticism. I may be fugly, but I wanted a career because it's awesome, not because I can't find a man.

I'm looking pretty hard for evidence of science in that skience. Not finding any. This is like lazy fourth-grader science fair project level of critical, which is probably an insult to lazy fourth graders.

FOR FUCK'S SAKE ARTICLE WHY ARE YOU EVEN ASKING THIS!!!! YES AS A WOMAN IT IS IMPOSSIBLE FOR ME TO WANT TO DEDICATE MY LIFE TO USING MY SKILLS TO BETTER MYSELF AND MY WORLD OR TO UNDERSTAND SUCH A CONCEPT!!!

I suppose that's what happens when you start with some bullshit psych evo theory

And secretly, I think that's what kind of breaks my heart? Because I love biology and evolutionary theory, and I find psychology interesting (if still rather clumsy and unrefined), so I had first thought that putting the two of them together would cause all kinds of joy, and so I've been waiting for evolutionary psychology to prove that it's awesome and scientific...

This study seems to be drawing conclusions from natural choices that have little to nothing to do with 'the availability of men,' and claiming it has something to do with a stupid thesis statement. I mean, in the world of instant communication on the internet, is it really valid to say 'well, this group of women couldn't find a man in their immediate area, so that's why they chose to be focused on their careers!!' anymore?

The first looked at the number of eligible men in an area, which they called the 'operational sex ratio'.

Orly? And what exactly was the algorithm for that, I wonder?

Those women who saw themselves as being less desirable than average were highly likely to be career-orientated.

Riiiight, because you guys totally ruled out other factors, such as what values were stressed in their family/community/religion, from what tasks they gain the highest satisfaction from, etc. Causation and correlation do not mix well.

And agony aunt Pam Spurr said...

Anecdotal evidence =/= scientific evidence, kthx.

And psychologists/sociologists wonder why they're not always taken seriously...

I may be unable to critically evaluate this article, because I saw the title and was unable to control myself from leaping from the couch to bang my head on the nearest wall.

But I did find a lot of supposed correlation in this incredibly badly structured "study". Not sure that I found any causation whatsoever to support their thesis. You know, as far as I can see through this marvelous science reporting.

I guess it's really difficult to find my reasons for wanting a career when, although I have a bangin' hot bod and a rack to merit Christina Hendricks-style feature articles, I'm just very interested in editing and not interested at all in marriage, motherhood, sex, PTA meetings, and romantic relationships.

No but seriously, I just REALLY REALLY REALLY want money. Like really really. I want a huge-ass pile of money. I'll spread it all over my room and roll in it and laugh about how rich I am. Fuck, I really want to do that. I want that feeling of joy and happiness that you get when you receive your first paycheck and go to the bank.

Umm lol, poor men folk who think they are entitled to it all because they have a penis. So lame.As an educated, career-driven women who is single but hasn't had any problems with feeling desired by the opposite sex, I can tell you that things fall apart very quickly once the men realize they themselves have nothing to offer me in terms of companionship, understanding, intelligent discussions and personal drive. Not to mention personal hygiene, anyway a woman has more tools to get what she wants without a man and some us aren't attracted to men anyway so that isn't even an issue. It's hilarious how these guys are freaking out because they have nothing to offer except their money (which if you live in Edmonton they blow on weed and booze anyway so why bother)and then they encounter women who make money and don't know what to do.

It amazes me that boys are encouraged and expected to want to grow up to be doctors, astronauts, police officers, pilots, etc., while girls are only supposed to dream of being mothers and helpmeets. If she really truly wants to work when she grows up, it should be a "girly" job like teacher (but not higher education), nurse, or child care, that shouldn't pay as much as "man" jobs because her husband should be bringing in most of the bacon.